Melbourne studio and mural artist David Lee Pereira has the job of transforming a grain silo at Kaniva into one of the next additions to the region’s Silo Art Trail.

Pereira has worked on a range public art projects in Melbourne, Sydney and Berlin.

He also painted GrainCorp silos at Merriwa in NSW in 2019.

Pereira will incorporate Wimmera plants and animals in his mural, reflecting on the beauty of the landscape and uniqueness of Kaniva.

He has a self-professed love of flowers and the baroque style. 

The Kaniva site includes three concrete silos on which the new artwork will be a prominent feature for the town.

A series of silo art projects in West Wimmera Shire has officially started, with western Victorian artist Geoffrey Carran starting work on GrainCorp’s silos at Goroke. 

West Wimmera Shire Council chief executive David Leahy said it was exciting to see both the Kaniva and Goroke silo art projects come to life. 

“Residents in these towns will have a front-row seat to the action and will be able to see these fantastic murals be painted,” he said.

“We hope these projects will encourage tourists to come and visit our unique part of the world, especially once COVID-19 restrictions have further eased.” 

COVID-19 restrictions on travel in Victoria delayed the start of work on the murals. 

GrainCorp corporate affairs manager Jess Simons said every silo artwork was unique to the town.

“We’re excited to be working with David Lee Pereira again and it has been fantastic to work alongside West Wimmera Shire Council, to help bring the community’s vision to life,’ she said.

“We have seen first-hand the benefits these visually inspiring community projects bring to regional towns and GrainCorp is pleased to contribute the canvas.” 

West Wimmera Shire Council is leading this project on behalf of the Kaniva community, which was successful in getting funding through the State Government’s Pick My Project campaign.

Kaniva and District Progress Association submitted the Kaniva project to the campaign. 

The new artworks will also be integrated with Wimmera Mallee Tourism’s augmented reality app, which profiles other silo-art locations in Victoria. 

The council has stressed that anyone planning on visiting the site to see painting in action must abide by all safety measures, including exclusion zones. 

It has suggested Band Park in Progress Street is the best place to view the Kaniva silos being painted.

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